FINRA Says Democrats Nominate Picks For SEC Commission

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) says that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has sent to the White House the Democrats’ choices to fill their two slots on the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The two names put forward are Luis Aguilar, a partner at the Atlanta law firm of McKenna, Long & Aldridge and Elisse Walter, a senior FINRA official.

The SEC is under pressure to not act on a controversial proxy initiative until all members are appointed. SEC Chairman Christopher Cox and SEC Commissioners Annette Lazareth, Paul Atkins, and Kathleen Casey are currently on the commission. Lazareth is the only Democrat on the panel. She plans to step down. Another commissioner, Roel Campos, left the SEC in August.

Aguilar specializes in investment companies, investment advisers, corporate and securities law, and international transactions. He also worked as an SEC staff attorney, practiced law with several national law firms prior to working with McKenna, Long & Aldridge, and served as general counsel to UNESCO.

Walter is Senior Executive Vice President, Regulatory Policy & Programs at FINRA. She served in the same role at NASD. Walter supervises a number of departments, including Corporate Finance, Investment Company Regulation, Advertising Regulation, and Member Education and Training, and the Offices of Disciplinary Affairs, Emerging Regulatory Issues and Economic Analysis. She is in charge of FINRA’s investor education initiatives.

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